In The News: Some Food Dyes May Affect Children with ADHD

Reader Contribution by Samantha Collins
Published on April 1, 2011
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Do you really know what is in your colorful, processed foods that you buy from the store? The next time you grab a box of your sugary treats for you child, take a look at the label to see if it contains any artificial dyes. These dyes may make the food look great, but it’s not helping your child if she or he has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. 

According to the Center for Science in Public Interest, some food dyes may increase hyperactivity among children. However, there is no strong evidence of this connection between food dye and hyperactivity. Because of this, the Food and Drug Administration decided to conduct a meeting to discuss this possible connection and could potentially strengthen the regulations dealing with these colorful ingredients. The meetings started on March 30.

Amanda Gardner, from Health.com, says in her article, FDA Weighs Food Dyes, Hyperactivity Link, that the debate over these potential effects have been going on since the 1970s. The FDA is finally taking action because of the CSPI that asked the FDA to ban eight various food dyes. However, it is difficult to tie this disorder with a specific food dye because many foods contain more than one.

Here is a list of food dyes to look out for in your child’s processed foods:

• Blue No. 1
• Blue No. 2
• Green No. 3
• Orange B
• Red No. 3
• Sodium benzoate
• Red No. 4
• Yellow No. 5
• Yellow No. 6

For a more detailed list of which foods contain these dyes, check out Health.com.

Photo by C.WPhoto/Courtesy Flickr

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